


Whoever Exalts Himself...

by Kralj



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:31:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25170163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kralj/pseuds/Kralj
Summary: Even in a sea of neon lights and cacophony, strength can shine. Cloud spends an hour at Wall Market's secluded gym as he awaits Aerith's makeover to be complete. (Slight novelization of the gym competition scene in Final Fantasy VII Remake)
Kudos: 8





	Whoever Exalts Himself...

Even in a sea of neon lights and cacophony, strength can shine.   
  
Cloud had already been wandering Midgar’s premium red light district, Wall Market, for an hour. The small home of sector seven and the Seventh Heaven bar awaited him, but part of it had now been sent elsewhere. Tifa was locked up in the infamous Don Corneo’s mansion at the center of Wall Market. Now, after scoring the attention of Don Corneo’s notables, the one Madam M, Aerith was getting a custom makeover to go undercover in the Don’s fortress. Cloud? He was wandering the streets, trying his best to keep cool and awaiting his new patron’s dress.   
  
The neon lights strung all across the roads in that distinctive Wutai style annoyed Cloud. Yet what was even worse was all the drunks laying around. Whether they were at the tables socializing, in the restaurants ending their hangover, or in pain on the ground - it was annoying. The music as well, dozens of tracks blaring from every bar and the Midgar famous Honey Bee Inn. 

Now, near the Don’s mansion, that’s where things were quieter. Red pagodas shot into the sky, terracotta roofs, golden engraved doors, the Don was the self proclaimed king of Wall Market. He had facilitated the growth over the years, and every owner paid a small fee of protection. Contraband and vice flowed through the market like water in a river. For some reason, Shinra, the true rulers of Midgar, seemed to pay a blind eye. Regardless, Cloud hung out in the shadows of a nearby wall, passing the time and staring at the fortress he would soon conquer.   
  
A new sound came to Cloud’s ears. Grunting, and the clapping of metal. Darting his eyes to a building not far off from the mansion, doors swung open. Peering through, Cloud saw a gym covered in bright, white, LED light. Out from the shadows, Cloud emerged, heading in. Cloud was covered in shadows as well: black gloves, boots, military pants, a wool turtleneck tank, and one modified SOLDIER shoulder guard - black too, of course. His five foot tall buster sword was strapped tightly to his back. His golden blonde hair flew slightly in the wind, yet abruptly ended as he entered the gym.

Neon did not reign in this gym. It was dusty, and the walls were barely finished. Rusty red beams held up the roof and the walls, and not a piece of drywall or studding could be found. Dozens of men in athletic gear were exercising across the gym. It was small, but seemingly spacious and open, about the size of two houses. Dumbbells, machines, and squat racks littered the walls, while at the off-center of the gym was a platform that looked like a boxing ring. Cloud’s eyebrows raised at the sight, before turning to see three men talking at the center of it all.

On the left was a white man, with blonde hair like Cloud. He was gigantic, nearly 6’ 5”, and with enough strength to lift a car as if it were a small cat. His hair was cut short on the sides, and was locked deep in conversation with the other two. On the right was a similar man, though black with a large tattoo on his right arm, reading “man among men,”. At the center was an odd looking man. He wasn’t as tall as the other two, and neither as enormous. His build was similar to Cloud’s but slightly more muscular - Cloud was a bit on the thing side. Yet, even stranger was everything else. His eyebrows appeared to have been styled, his eyelashes beautified, yet his jaw was strong and firm. His hair was not long, but thick and black, rolled up back in a hairband and pushed behind his head, covering him like a lion’s mane.   
  
As Cloud approached, their conversation came to an end and the strange center man called.   
  
“Cloud… been waiting for you to show up! Thanks for coming, and welcome to our humble training hall,” The man reached out his hand for a shake, which Cloud reluctantly agreed. “Jules, head trainer,”   
  
Since his presence was already known, Cloud did not feel it was necessary to introduce himself.   
  
Jules smirked. “If you’ve got some time to spare, how about a little bit of fun? Wanna try taking on one of our guys?”   
  
The black man interjected. “You’re not serious, are you? Look at him! He’s a scrawny little thing. I could snap you like a twig!”   
  
Standing tall and upright, seemingly taller than his companions, Jules warned the man. “Now now... I wouldn’t judge this one by his muscle mass.” Jules then turned back to the new visitor. “Well, what do you say Cloud? Wanna give it a go?”   
  
SOLDIER, first class. Or rather, ex-SOLDIER. The process to become one of Shinra’s elite SOLDIERs was arduous and consuming, yet the training and the infusion of Mako made Cloud one of the most fit and dexterous men alive. There would still be another hour before Madam M was finished with Aerith, and this seemed like it would pass the time. His challenger did not seem like much of a threat either. Cloud set his buster sword off to the side.  
  
“Alright. Let’s do it.”   
  
“Ha! You’re taking me, on? You look like a dried up old terpiscolt left out in the sun,”   
  
The two men then began the ritual. Cloud and Ronnie hopped over into the boxing ring and assumed a position at either side. As they did so, other denizens of Jules’s kingdom stopped their lifts and came to watch the commotion. Jules jumped up to the arena but did not enter, standing at the edge of the ring and turning to face the other athletes. “Ex-SOLDIER first class Cloud Strife, versus our very own Ronnie. Squats, most with perfect form in a minute,” Jules shouted, jumping down onto the ground and watching with some distance. “Go!”   
  
Squats? Easy. Using his inherent strength, cloud took simple breaths and began to squat up and down. He felt some fire in his legs, but kept up a decent pace. Cloud’s eyes darted to Ronnie for a moment, noticing him struggle and even fall down for a moment, Cloud rolled his eyes and continued his squats. After a minute or so, Jules called the match. Cloud was declared the victor, with a squat record of 20 to Ronnie’s 8. As Jules called the victory, Ronnie fell over on his butt, in frustration and poor form. He grit his teeth and turned to face Jules and the victor.   
  
Ronnie grumbled. “How! How did I lose this scrawny little kid who doesn’t even consume his daily recommended amount of protein!”   
  
“Ronnie, you know it’s not all about mass!” snapped Jules in a fatherly tone. “You’re too quick to judge people based on their build. That, and your untrained ego are the main reasons you lost to our bold challenger here,” . 

Ronnie remained on the floor, rolling around before taking his lesson and exiting the arena. Meanwhile, Jules beckoned to Cloud, who still stood in the arena above.   
  
“Thanks for helping teach my boys a valuable lesson, and sorry for dragging you into it. Cloud, we’re all one big family at this gym - and now you’re a part of it. If you’re ever up for training, our doors are always open to you. Let’s work together to build healthy bodies *and* minds,”   
  
Cloud shook his head. “It’s a shame I did it for free.”. The appearance of Jules’s face still bothered Cloud. The eyebrows, the slight makeup look of his cheeks. What was up with him? Regardless, being a part of Jules’s family didn’t seem that horrible, at least for the next hour.   
  
Jay, the man on the right from earlier, white with blonde hair and nearly the same size as the towering Ronnie approached Cloud.   
  
“What about you?” 

Jay, wrapped with a towel around his neck, grinned. “I was hoping you’d say that. You want to go, do ya? Well, bring it on!”   
  
“Eager for more? I love it Cloud, let’s keep it up!” smiled Jules. 

Cloud reached out his hand, which Jay took with ease, helping him to get up toward the arena. Jay kept his towel wrapped around the neck, wearing short athletic shorts and a deep tank. He’d already have the smell of sweat around him from earlier, and assumed the same position that Ronnie once had. Cloud stretched out his legs and arms for a moment, and waited for the king of Wall Market’s “premier gym” to sound the horn.  
  
“We’ve got another match - between ex-SOLDIER, first class, Cloud Strife - and long time Wall Market lifter Jay! I want to see perfect form this run! Cloud, you were slippin’ a little last time!”   
  
“You can back out if you’re scared,” Jay quickly interjected and threatened.   
  
Cloud rolled his eyes again. Even in the gym, everyone in Wall Market was a little eccentric. Maybe some kind of magical spell cast by the Don himself, Cloud thought. Regardless, he put himself in focus and waited.   
  
“Go!”   
  
Cloud began to squat. In, out. In, out. Cloud breathed and pushed his hips back, squatting and getting a perfect 90 parallel for the crowd and almighty Jules himself. Turning over to see the competition, Jay was going. It had been nearly twenty seconds into the round, and both were going at great pace. Cloud was starting to feel tears of sweat fall down on his forehead, pushing his body against the ground and upward in quick succession. Yet to Cloud’s greater amazement was Jay.   
  
Jay had been squatting without fail just as the SOLDIER was. Cloud kept his arms in a rigid hold as if holding a horn or rifle, while Jay was more free-form. While Cloud was ahead, Jay was keeping pace, neither stopping nor stalling as Ronnie had done before. Ronnie, meanwhile, stood off at the sides of the gym next to Jules and a few of the other gym goers, cheering on Jay from the sidelines as Jules barked about their form. Yet despite the effort, Cloud managed to win the day.   
  
“Jay, 18. Cloud, 26. The SOLDIER wins again!” In the background, a few cheered and clapped, but soon the sound turned into gasps. “It’s not fair you guys are having all the fun. Mind if I have this squat?”   
  
Cloud shrugged his shoulders. “If you think you can take me, go ahead.”   
  
Jules kicked his legs for a moment, stretching out. Nearly everyone was now at the edge of the arena, cast under that white highbay light, to see their king against Cloud. Jules had some strange boots that laced up to his knees, and his shirt was decorated with some criss-crossing pattern. He fixed his headband for a moment, keeping his lion’s mane pristine, before someone called out in the back.   
  
It was Jay. “I’ll count this one off. Three, two, one! Go!”   
  
Back to back, no problem. Cloud took a few breaths and continued his squat, focusing on his form and keeping his knees back. Yet as he pressed against the floor, Cloud began to worry. Jules was going, and going fast. Like following the beat to a tribal drum, Jules quickly finished his squats. Before long, he began to get a lead on Cloud, which caused Cloud to worry. He tried to keep his eyes off Jules, before suddenly falling backward on his ass. Stunned, Cloud remained there for a moment as Jules flawlessly continued the challenge.   
  
“Time! Cloud 20 - Jules 30! Jules reigns supreme!”   
  
“Jules, Jules, Jules!”   
  
Cloud placed his hand on his forehead, his ass still firmly placed on the ground. Shaking his head for a moment, he looked up back at Jules.   
  
“It was a good effort, Cloud. If you’ve got the time, feel free to challenge me again.” Jules remarked, before a gym denizen called him off for help with a lift. 

Cloud looked down at a watch of his. According to his estimate, there was still about thirty minutes left before he had to go check on Aerith. Even more surprising, Jay and Ronnie jumped into the arena, sliding under the bottom run and into the center with Cloud. Ronnie lay his hand out for Cloud, which Cloud firmly grasped and helped him on his feet. He dusted himself off and looked at the two giants standing before him. There was a wide grin on both of their faces.  
  
“No hard feelings about supporting Jules. He’s one of us, we gotta support him. You did good though,” Ronnie said, placing his hand on Cloud’s shoulder.   
  
“Yeah. But I still failed,”   
  
“You got time?” Jay put his towel off on the ring.   
  
Cloud nodded in reluctant approval.   
  
“We don’t have what it takes to beat Jules yet, but you - you’ve got potential Cloud! Even if you’ve got the build of a popsicle stick...”   
  
“What Ronnie said. We thought, three of us practice together. Then you can challenge Jules again. No promises who we’ll cheer on, but…”   
  
Cloud put a hand on his hip. “Alright. But you guys think you can teach me?”   
  
“Cloud, you were in your head that whole match, watching Jules. Jules was focused on the competition and himself. Then, when you fell down, you lost all morale - even Ronnie got back up in his fight! How do you think you’re gonna ever win thinking like that? Three minute squats, three minute breaks. Me and Ronnie at your side.”   
  
Cloud agreed, whether for ego, improvement, or time, even Cloud was unsure. Cloud was a the center of the ring, Ronnie on his right with his “man among men” tattoo, and the lightning Jay at the left. Jay began to call out times, and three of them squat. Cloud closed his eyes and pushed forward, feeling the burn in his legs. He wasn’t used to this kind of endurance and work, but Cloud knew that it was in his head. Even if he felt like hell, there was more that he could do. Even if he didn’t think there was.   
  
The three musketeers squatted for eight rounds of their split. Ronnie kept falling, yet was never discouraged and quickly got on his feet too. Even Cloud fell once. Jay kept the rings, whipping them into shape and pushing them on. Cloud tried hard to not grit his teeth. It was some kind of response he had to a difficult situation, though it always perplexed him. What use would those teeth do? In any event, the eighth round finished, and Cloud fell down for a moment, catching his breath. The three of them rested together on the ground, wiping the sweat from the brow.   
  
“Jules! Cloud wants to challenge you again!” shouted Ronnie, standing up on his two feet and sliding out of the arena.   
  
_“What? Now? I still have a few more minutes, I need to rest, I …”_ Cloud thought to himself, trying hard to keep his face cool in the face of this unexpected turn of events. He got up on his feet and awaited Jules, watching him approach.   
  
“You’re on Cloud!” Jules rolled under the rungs of the arena, proudly standing at his spot. He rose his hand up in the air as the whole gym began to crowd around the boxing ring, ready for the rematch.   
  
“Cloud Jules rematch. One minute best of squats. Three, two…. one! Go!” Jay shouted.   
  
Cloud tried to take his new friends’ advice into account. He knew he’d have to go a faster pace than he did the first time, though he was already worn out from the previous work. He felt the pressure build in his thighs and his lower back as his body did its best to stabilize itself. Trying hard to keep his mouth slightly open, Cloud stared straight ahead at the wall and a few spectators and began to squat. Up. Down. Up. Down. Nothing was in Cloud’s head except himself and his suffering.   
  
“I can hear your muscles crying out in joy and pain!” said a familiar voice in the back   
  
“Poetry in motion!”   
  
Before long, Cloud suddenly noticed himself slip onto the ground. He began to pant quickly before reminding himself of Ronnie. Then, he got back up and continued the squats. What was seconds felt like an eternity to Cloud, but if it was an eternity - then he would do an eternity of squats. Yet, just as Cloud found himself surged with new energy, pushing faster and picking up the pace, the competition was called.   
  
“Amazing! I can’t believe it! Jules 35, Cloud - 38!”   
  
Stunned, Cloud turned over to see Jules, bent over with his hands on his knees standing. He looked over at Cloud and gave him a smirk, arching his back right and then approaching him. He let out his hand for a shake, as the crowd behind them cheered Cloud’s name. Without a word, Cloud took his hand and agreed.   
  
“I had no idea how strong you really were,” Jules panted. “You truly are something, you know?” Jules turned to face the rest of his comrades, addressing the crowd and lifting Cloud’s hand. “Listen everyone, we can be stronger, better. Now, let’s hit those weights!”   
  
“You got it Jules!” affirmed the crowd, going back to the original positions.   
  
The whole spectacle almost got Cloud to smile, though he tried his best to hide it. “Thanks for letting me spend some time with you guys,”. For a moment, the sound of cheers and clanging metal began to fade, and fireworks and other hollering began to invade from outside. The princess had begun her approach to the Don’s castle, no doubt. Madam M is truly exceptional. Cloud looked back at Jules for a moment.   
  
“I told you - you’re a part of this family Cloud. But it sounds like you’ve got somewhere else to be tonight. Go ahead, I’ll hold down the fort.”   
  
“I will,” Cloud smiled. Tifa was locked up in Corneo’s mansion, and now Aerith’s plan was ready to be put in action. Jules was just the warmup. Grabbing his buster sword, Cloud left the small, secluded gym in the sea of neon lights that is Wall Market. He left standing taller than before, and perhaps more humble as well.   
  



End file.
